Cufflinks

How to wear cufflinks

Every man should have a pair of cufflinks in his wardrobe. Cufflinks are an opportunity for a man to add more personality to his style, but maybe it's not always easy to figure out when and how to use them. Therefore, we have compiled a guide for you here.

Cufflinks appeared in the 1800's, where shirts were very heavy and stiff, and it was difficult to button the sleeves with a normal button. Therefore, it was popular to use cufflinks and this continued right up to the 1970’s. Here cufflinks disappeared as the hippie movement wanted a regular button and would not radiate extravagance with cufflinks. Today, they have happily returned to the modern man's wardrobe and style.

Formal occasions

The obvious occasion for cufflinks is a formal occasion such as a wedding or an event that requires black tie or white tie. For such occasions it is given that cufflinks are a part of the dress.

When you wear black tie or a tuxedo, it will be a good idea to go with some simple cufflinks, which gives a classic look. For example, choose some in silver or in a solid color. For white tie the dress code is usually very strict and you should also be a little more careful with cufflinks. Here, a good and safe choice is cufflinks made from mother of pearl, which can be quite expensive. If this is too expensive, you can go for something that has the same style or color as mother of pearl, as it offers a sophisticated and classic look.

At the office

At the office it is not very common to use cufflinks every day, but if there’s a special occasion at the office, they can be a great addition to your outfit.

If you would like to wear cufflinks at the office, we have a piece of advice to do it stylishly; always use a solid color shirt, such as white or light blue. If you choose a white shirt, you can be a little more creative with cufflinks and maybe choose something with color, gemstones or a subtle pattern.

If you instead choose a colored shirt, hold the cufflinks in the same color, but you can choose to take a darker or lighter tone of color. For example if you choose a light blue shirt, you can choose dark blue cufflinks.

Casual events

You don’t immediately think that you can use cufflinks to a casual outfit, but if you do it right, it's not a bad thing. Going to a social event, this will definitely give your outfit more personality. One way you can do that is by choosing a light blue shirt, a dark blue blazer, casual pants such as chinos, and silver cufflinks. This is very subtle, yet it gives your outfit an upgrade. There is one rule that you never put cufflinks and jeans together so avoid this at all cost with a casual look.

Tips for cufflinks

There are a number of useful tips that we would like to let you in on:

Don’t use cufflinks without a blazer

Don’t use too bright colors and patterns - Use understated buttons or none

Always match tie or bow tie with your cufflinks

Remember that the decorative side facing outward and the lock towards you

Put the cufflinks in before putting the shirt on, so you don’t have to stand and hassle of closing the lock with one hand. Most should be able to get their hand through the sleeve with the cuffs in

Gold and silver cufflinks are considered as neutral and can be used for most occasions

Find the right shirt

Not all shirts are intended to have cufflinks on, so make sure your shirt can be used for this. Find a shirt intended for cufflinks, these are often categorized as formal clothing. You can see a small selection of Bertoni shirts with the possible addition of cufflinks down below.